Five CRPF jawans, two militants killed in Kashmir encounter

Srinagar: In a major strike, two terrorists gunned down five CRPF men and injured nearly 28 others before being felled in retaliatory action by the security personnel in South Kashmir's Pulwama district today.

The incident took place at Frestbal in Pampore, 14 km from here, when the terrorists fired at a bus carrying CRPF personnel. The Road Opening Party (ROP) of the CRPF retaliated and, in the fierce gun battle that ensued, over three dozen paramilitary personnel were injured.

As soon as the two terrorists were eliminated, evacuation process was carried out and the injured CRPF personnel were rushed to Army's base hospital.

The sources said that five personnel were declared brought dead, while the condition of four others was stated to be critical. As many as 28 other personnel were still admitted with gunshot wounds.

Inspector General of CRPF Nalin Prabhat rushed to the spot and was leading the combing operations as the security agencies suspected two militants could have been removed from the spot with some local help.

Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police K Rajendra, who visited the spot, said the two terrorists had been neutralized but "unfortunately we have suffered some causalities too".

He did not give the number of CRPF causalities and said "our focus is on nabbing the culprits". Asked whether the slain terrorists were from across the border, Rajendra said, "In all probability they seem to be from Pakistan."

This is the second attack on a bus carrying security personnel within three weeks. On June 3, terrorists had fired at a bus carrying BSF personnel in Bijbehara, killing two personnel.